Inaugural Real Living Community Service Awards Presented at Real Living Connection 2018
Real Living Real Estate is proud to announce that 13 network franchisees and agents were recognized for their civic contributions and community service through the Inaugural Real Living Community Service Awards.
Recipients of the Real Living Community Service Award were recognized among nearly 400 attendees at this year’s Real Living Connection conference in St. Petersburg, Florida.
“From supporting children with disabilities to helping victims of natural disaster, we are so proud to recognize these everyday heroes making a positive difference right in their backyards,” said Robert McAdams Jr., president of Real Living.
To be considered for this year’s award, applicants submitted a short video describing their work in their community and the inspiration behind their service. Highlights of the video submissions were played at the Real Living Real Estate booth for Real Living Connection 2018 attendees. A highlight reel can be viewed at: https://youtu.be/M-RyAuLKYBY
“Our first honorees set high standards for their compassion and corporate citizenship,” said Gino Blefari, president and CEO of HSF Affiliates. “Each has gone beyond the call of duty to help local people and programs. They are wonderful ambassadors of our Real Living Real Estate brand.”
The full list of winners includes:
Real Living Realty Professionals, Longmeadow, MA
Real Living Realty Professionals, Longmeadow, Massachusetts, helped not only organize an event addressing the Opioid crisis, it also then planned a fundraising drive to purchase a van for a local child with disabilities.
Beth Wolff Realtors® Real Living, Houston, TX
Beth Wolff Realtors Real living of Houston, TX has a strong, multi-generational history of community service in Houston. Their participation in community service includes the Greater Houston Partnership, Operation Houston, Keep Houston Beautiful, The American Heart Association and support of Shop With Heart.
PowerMark Properties, A Real Living Real Estate Network Member, Biloxi, MS
PowerMark Properties of Biloxi partners with Together We Rise, an organization dedicated to transforming the way kids experience foster care in communities across the United States.
Real Living Advantage Real Estate, Norfolk, NE
Together the team at Real Living Advantage Real Estate support several local organizations including: Mercy Meals, Go Red For Women, Supplies for Hurricane Victims in Puerto Rico, a Christmas Tree Food Drive, the Angel Tree Picking and Packing Toys for Kids.
Real Living Wareck D’Ostilio, New Haven, CT
John Wareck and Frank D’Ostilio, Owners of Real Living Wareck D’Ostilio, and their team are dedicated to making the world a better place. Together they partner with the Downtown Evening Soup Kitchen (DESK) to provide meals for the Homeless and Underserved.
Real Living Messina & Associates, Duluth, MN
Real Living Messina & Associates, Duluth, Minnesota, completed their 3rd year as a company in partnership with the Best Christmas Ever, whose mission is to provide for families in need during the holiday season.
Dave Culbertson, Real Living Home Team, Mt. Vernon, OH
Dave Culbertson, Broker Owner of Real Living Home Team, Mt. Vernon, Ohio, and founder of the Arms of An Angel Foundation, is devoted to keeping drugs off the streets of his community with direct donations helping fund K-9 units for local sheriff’s departments.
Elaine Wehri, Real Living CCR Realtors, Lima, OH
Elaine Wehri has lived a life devoted to community service. She has helped raise money for the Lima Salvation Army’s Red Kettle campaign, has volunteered as an auctioneer for the Bluffton Lions Club, sponsored the Fort Fest in Fort Jennings and much more.
Katie Weaver, Real Living Kee Realty, Washington Township, MI
Katie Weaver, agent with Real Living Kee Realty, Washington Township, Michigan shared the story of her participation as a key driver in the success of the Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs program.
Brenda Cuoco, Real Living Realty Professionals, Wilbraham, MA
Brenda Cuoco and her team participated in their city-wide Thanksgiving Mayflower Marathon and chose to support the Open Pantry food collection program providing food for the needy and homeless.
Stephen Sheffer, Beth Wolff REALTORS® Real Living, Houston, TX
From Beth Wolff Realtors Real Living, agent Stephen Sheffer shared his involvement in the well-being of Houston with multiple organizations including Habitat For Humanity, The Mission Center of Houston, Avon Walk for Breast Cancer Research and Compassion United.
Navona Hart, Real Living Cornerstone, Farmville, VA
Navona Hart supports several local charities including the Piedmont Senior Resources Center for homebound elderly.
Landon Sallee, Freedom Realty & Property Management, Winchester, KY
Landon Sallee, an agent with Freedom Realty & Property Management, grew his locks over 9 inches to donate them to cancer patients experiencing the emotional pain of hair loss.
The Real Living Community Service Award, recognizes member companies and agents alike for the outstanding service to enrich your community and ultimately, make it a better place to live.
Freedom Realty & Property Management Joins Real Living Real Estate Brokerage Network
Real Living is pleased to announce that Freedom Realty & Property Management in Winchester, KY, has joined the network. Freedom Realty & Property Management is the first company to join Real Living under the brand’s repositioning as “The Leader in Customized Real Estate.”
As part of the re-engineering of Real Living’s branding, franchisees like Freedom Realty & Property Management are now afforded maximum flexibility in business. New network brokerages may retain more of their local identity while fully leveraging brand support and resources. The brand is still selling franchises under the traditional Real Living branding but offers this new option to potential and existing franchisees.
“It was very important that Real Living allowed us the flexibility to retain our local identity backed by the Real Living solutions, systems, tools, training and network reach,” said Greg Wood, broker/owner of Freedom Realty & Property Management.
Allan Dalton Named as COO of Real Living Real Estate Brokerage Franchise Network
HSF Affiliates LLC, which operates the real estate brokerage franchise networks Real Living Real Estate, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and Prudential Real Estate, announced the appointment of Allan Dalton as chief operating officer at Real Living. Dalton, reporting to network president Bob McAdams, will oversee franchise sales and, with McAdams and the team, is working to reposition Real Living for long-term growth. He will remain as a special consultant to Gino Blefari, president and CEO of HSF Affiliates.
Dalton has served HSF Affiliates in a consulting role for two years. Working with McAdams and the Real Living team, he is re-engineering Real Living to offer maximum branding flexibility for franchisees. This will enable new brokerages to retain more of their local identity when they join the network, such as incorporating their existing logos and brand identity with the familiar Real Living markings and tagline, “A Real Living Network Member.” It will also help the brand to attract more independent brokerages that want brand support and resources without compromising their unique brand identity, and will establish Real Living’s new direction, “The Leader in Customized Real Estate.” The brand transformation will be introduced later in the fall.
“Allan knows the real estate business from so many angles – he’s a true asset,” said Gino Blefari, president and CEO of HSF Affiliates. “His energy and ideas are already shaping our Real Living network and value proposition.”
Dalton brings a wealth of real estate experience to his position. He is the former CEO of realtor.com and past president and co-owner of a 32-office Regional Brokerage – Murphy Realty Better Homes and Gardens. He was also named by the National Association of REALTORS as one of the real estate industry’s 25 most influential thought leaders.
“Real Living has developed many exceptional programs and services and Allan will help us better communicate Real Living’s value within our network and to consumers and prospective franchisees.”
Dalton, a former draft pick of the NBA’s Boston Celtics, brings with him deep branding and franchising experience. While growing Murphy Realty, he was credited with creating the Better Homes and Gardens Pacesetter networking group, and co-created its business-to-consumer marketing systems. As a consultant to Cendant (now Realogy), Dalton co-created national marketing systems for NRT, Coldwell Banker, Century 21 and ERA.
Dalton, author of several books on real estate, is a former SVP for NRT, president of Prominent Properties Sotheby’s International Realty and chief marketing officer of RISMedia. He is also a sought-after public speaker for the real estate industry.
Such experience, leadership and industry-wide respect will help Real Living blossom in the months and years ahead, said Blefari. “Allan possesses a remarkable ability to construct, package and present a real estate value proposition,” he explained. “Real Living has developed many exceptional programs and services and Allan will help us better communicate Real Living’s value within our network and to consumers and prospective franchisees.”
McAdams said Dalton is an ideal fit for the brokerage franchise network. “I worked directly with Allan the past several months to reposition Real Living,” he said. “The experience was terrific and made it clear we needed Allan to help us grow the network as ‘The Leader in Customized Real Estate.’ Of course, Allan’s knowledge of the industry, of consumers and of the web and emerging technologies will help us in our ongoing strategies and planning.”
Dalton said he’s excited to join HSF Affiliates and the Real Living brand. “Real Living has attracted a legion of fiercely loyal brokers and associates who possess a deep connection to the brand and to one another,” he explained. “Their integrity, independence and optimism make it inspiring to work with them and for them.
“Of course, having the full support of Gino Blefari and the broader HSF Affiliates team bodes extremely well for the long-term growth prospects Bob and I see for the Real Living Real Estate network,” Dalton added.
Thoughts on Leadership: Real Estate and Legislation
By Gino Blefari
This week my travels find me in Washington, D.C. for the National Association of REALTORS® RES Advisory Group Meeting and next in San Diego to attend the 2017 AREAA National Convention (but more on that next week). I’ve long embraced the virtues of our industry’s leaders working closely alongside lawmakers to ensure not only the synergy of current legislation with our business practices but also to ensure our nation’s laws promote and encourage homeownership for all.
The meeting kicked off Wednesday at the Treasury Department with a presentation from Drew Maloney, Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs, Treasury. We were also joined that evening by Senator Isakson (R-GA), Congressman Sherman (D-CA) and Congressman Rothfus (R-PA).
As pure coincidence, on the day RES began, the brand-new Tax Reform Framework was released, called “The American Model for Global Competitiveness.” The main purpose of the reform, as stated in the document is to put “America on a level international playing field and [put] an end to the incentives for shipping jobs overseas.”
Maloney fielded questions from our group about this new Framework and how it affects the real estate industry. NAR released the following about where the association stands on tax reform: “Our current tax system is too complex, and tax reform should simplify it. However, tax reform must not discard the features of the system that provide the bedrock for homeownership in America.”
After the Q&A, I was fortunate enough to spend some time with Senator Isakson and was impressed, as always, by his strong and consistent advocacy of the real estate industry. If you didn’t know, he’s one of us. Isakson, along with being a prominent political figure, is also a successful businessman with more than 40 years of experience as a broker for family-owned Northside Realty. In addition, he holds the distinction of being the only Georgian ever to get elected to the state House, state Senate, U.S. House and U.S. Senate. Last year he broke yet another record as the first Georgian Republican to ever get elected for a third term to the U.S. Senate. Now that’s an impressive and well-respected leader!
This Thursday morning, Rei Mesa, 2017 RES Chair called the meeting to order and next we received an update from NAR CEO Bob Goldberg, who was grilled with some tough questions and handled them all with characteristic intelligence and poise. Kudos to Ron Peltier and Lennox Scott who were very direct with Bob on how NAR can improve its support of real estate professionals.
After, Lawrence Yun, NAR Senior Vice President of Research, provided a housing and market update, followed by Jennifer Barnard, FBI Headquarters, Supervisory Special Agent, who spoke about the perils of wire fraud and what we can do as an industry to prevent this persistent problem. Katie Johnson, NAR Senior Vice President and General Counsel, finished up the day with a legal presentation.
Some additional notable priorities for the RES Meeting included:
- Educate the REALTOR® community about data security and cybercrimes related to real estate transactions
- Protect the Mortgage Interest Deduction
- Support Upstream implementation
- Improve down payment savings options for first time home buyers
… And more.
So, what’s the message? The one, huge takeaway from my time spent in Washington, D.C. is the importance of staying informed, staying connected to our legislative leaders and staying educated on what’s happening in government and how these changes affect our industry. A good place to start would be here, researching NAR’s official stance on tax reform. Whether or not you agree with the position taken, it’s important as a leader to have an opinion that’s researched, strategic and informed. The best leaders are those ones who don’t just say what they want but also exactly why they want it. Take heed from this RES group, filled with busy and important leaders who no matter what give up their time to attend because they understand the significance of making their voice heard in such an impactful setting as our nation’s capital.
GINO BLEFARI is CEO of HSF Affiliates LLC. You can follow Gino on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Thoughts on Leadership: Clear Your Mind
By Gino Blefari
This week my travels unexpectedly find me working from home, and not, as originally planned, meeting in Miami. My event was canceled due to Hurricane Irma and its impending destruction and my thoughts are with those in Florida currently dealing with the terrible aftermath of the storm. On behalf of our entire organization, our prayers go out to all of you.
The unanticipated change in schedule did afford me days to fall back into my usual routine, which starts with a 5 a.m. visit to Starbucks, my dog Kona by my feet, writing in my journal and doing my meditation and prayers.
I actually enjoy time off—the hours before the work day starts, the weekends—because they’re opportunities to examine yourself and create a better you with a clear head. As I say, do stuff for yourself in the morning and things for everyone else in the afternoon. Why? Because you have a much greater chance of getting them done in the morning and less of a chance in the afternoon when interruptions often come up. In the morning, you can really focus on what’s working and what’s not working without the whirlwind of your daily activities pulling your thoughts in other directions. On weekends, on late nights and during those early morning hours, you can sit somewhere quiet and THINK. (Did you know Apple CEO Tim Cook gets up every day at 3:45 a.m.? Or that Xerox CEO Ursula Burns wakes at 5:15 a.m. for a workout? Twitter and Square CEO Jack Dorsey wakes up before the sun rises for a 6-mile run. I’d argue there’s a direct correlation between utilizing downtime and the success of your leadership.)
Every Saturday I ask myself this question: What am I doing in the upcoming week to improve so that I’m better than I was the week before?
This past weekend I was talking with my friend, David Bergman, during our weekly book club meeting. David was coughing so I asked what was wrong. “Dave, are you still not over that cold?” I said, because the week before he had been sick. “I am,” he told me, “I just ordered a mocha and I’m pretty sure I’m allergic to dairy.”
Right then I resolved to eliminate dairy from my coffee. It was a small discipline, a small change as a result of speaking with Dave but it will allow me to be a better version of myself in the weeks and months ahead.
In fact, here’s a change-oriented practice I employ from Peter Bregman’s book, 18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done: Set your alarm clock or phone to go off every hour during the day … that’s eight 1-minute check-ins. When the clock goes off, it’s your reminder to pause, reflect, recharge, recalibrate and refocus.
So, what’s the message? If you find yourself with a stretch of time where you can relax, make sure you use it as an opportunity to contemplate the current state of your mind and body. Make a small change to better your health, shift your mindset toward even greater positivity, think about ways you can be more productive in the week ahead. I promise you, when you next sit down to work, you’ll be glad you made good use of your time off.
GINO BLEFARI is CEO of HSF Affiliates LLC. You can follow Gino on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Thoughts on Leadership: A Time for Change
By Gino Blefari
This week my travels find me in New York City, in particular at the prestigious Harvard Club for RISMedia’s Real Estate CEO Exchange, which brings together more than 225 powerhouse real estate leaders from all brands and all sectors of the industry to strategize on how best to meet the needs of today’s consumer.
I’ve been attending this event for more than 20 years and you might ask yourself why I go back to the same conference year after year … Well, here’s why …
First, John Featherston, founder, CEO and publisher of RISMedia and Daryl MacPherson, RISMedia’s executive vice president, do a consistently great job organizing and hosting the event. It’s so clear how much they love this industry and how much they want to have serious, progressive discussions about ways to make it better.
The overwhelming theme during this conference was change. John F. Kennedy once said, “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.”
And the agenda for the New York event reflects this very sentiment. Click HERE to browse all the featured speakers.
Ron Peltier, chairman and CEO of HomeServices of America, Inc., kicked off CEO Exchange with a keynote, “State of the Real Estate Union” about the importance of our ability as real estate leaders to adapt to an industry in flux.
Other panel discussions for the day included: “What Keeps You Up at Night? Overcoming Hurdles to Profitability,” and “A Better Crystal Ball: How to Leverage Predictive Analytics.”
On day two, topics included: “Transforming the Real Estate Transaction in the On-Demand Economy,” “The Evolution of the Real Estate Mode: Are You Adapting Fast Enough?” “Agent Teams, How to Manage, Maximize and Mitigate Risk,” “Averting Disaster: The Top 3 Risks to Your Brokerage and How to Avoid Them” and “The Verdict is In: Agent Loyalty is Out – Now What?”
As you can see, the panels didn’t shy away from some very difficult and even uncomfortable issues. But in truth, there’s no way to create lasting change without digging deep into plaguing problems, focusing on the challenges, sharing potential solutions, determining a plan and of course, executing.
So, what’s the message? It’s undoubtedly about change but it’s also about John and Daryl’s ability to recognize that change needs to be made. They’re real estate leaders who genuinely have great relationships with so many brokers in our industry, across all brands, across companies large and small, and use those relationships to bring leaders together. They’re also constantly giving new real estate leaders a chance to share their ideas because they’re often the ones at the forefront of change and have the nimbleness to implement it quickly. Still, John and Daryl recognize the weight and worthiness of decades-experienced brokers. The answers to our most persistent problems, I believe, come from combining the ideas of both groups. As JFK said, “Hold fast to the best of the past and move fast to the best of the future.”
GINO BLEFARI is CEO of HSF Affiliates LLC. You can follow Gino on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Real Living Real Estate Sales Professional Named REALTOR® Emeritus
Thoughts on Leadership: Leading Through the Storm
By Gino Blefari
This week my travels find me in Northern California, where I’ve been keeping close tabs on the devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey. I’ve received numerous phone calls, made quite a few myself, emailed network members, and read your emails in return, which detail not only the destructive aftermath of the storm but also the inspiring courage of volunteers who are stepping up from all parts of the country to help where help is needed. Small boats, military Humvees … these heroes are deploying whatever it takes to bring those in harm’s way to safety.
It could be a whole post—or even a book—to explain why the worst situations bring out our very best but it’s certainly worthwhile to examine Hurricane Harvey through the lens of leadership. When disaster strikes, we look to leaders to provide strength, inspire hope, and guide us through hardship toward recovery and ultimately, some kind of resolution.
When I think of leaders who have battled resounding tragedy, I think of Rudy Giuliani, mayor of New York City during the 9/11 attacks. His ability to be compassionate and calm yet realistic and candid imbued Manhattan—and the United States—with much-needed brightness during one of America’s darkest days.
I think also of Captain Edward John Smith, most famous for steering the RMS Titanic, who went down with the ship when it struck an iceberg and sank on April 15, 1912. The British Merchant Navy officer is remembered fondly for his stoicism in the face of utter tragedy on the high seas. Crew members recalled his formidable figure standing tall on the ship’s bridge, megaphone in hand, assisting with the evacuation of passengers onto life boats, knowing not all would survive and knowing he would most likely die.
Another example of leadership amid crisis can be seen in Mary Barra, GM’s first female CEO. In 2014, Barra—who had been an electrical engineer at GM for more than 30 years—was only two months into her new role when news broke that GM put more than 1.7 million cars on the road that had an ignition-switch defect responsible for dozens of deaths. The development was an awful blow to one of the world’s largest automakers and Barra didn’t shy away from blame. Instead, she addressed the harrowing ordeal with a solemn and earnest video apology. “Something went very wrong,” she said, “And terrible things happened.”
A 2007 article that ran in The New York Times said this about leadership and disaster: “In times of consuming trauma, psychologists and historians say, a leader must speak with a trusted voice and sketch honestly the painful steps to safety. A leader must weave a narrative of shared loss while acknowledging consuming anger.”
It’s been estimated that more than 30,000 people have been displaced just in Texas alone, and hours ago Harvey threatened the region again with relentless new waves of rain. The images we see on the ground are a heartbreaking reminder that now more than ever leaders are needed to do what we do best … lead.
So, what’s the message? Leadership exists on a continuum and its core tenets of resilience, determination and strategic planning then execution must be present as evidently in the lowest valleys of leadership as they are at the highest peaks. When catastrophe strikes like it did recently for the victims of Hurricane Harvey, a leader must balance sympathy with strength, feel the tense emotional pull of the situation and lead with rationality and clear-mindedness, just as the network professionals who shared their volunteer stories with me have done. It’s never an easy or simple thing to do but then again, what act of courage ever is?
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If you’d like to contribute funds to those affected by Hurricane Harvey, the following organizations are currently collecting donations:
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I ask now that you keep those affected by the storm in your thoughts and prayers.
GINO BLEFARI is CEO of HSF Affiliates LLC. You can follow Gino on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
VIDEO // Real Living Casa Fina Realty Experiences Massive Success
Nick Parrinello, broker/owner at Real Living Casa Fina Realty in Tampa, FL, explains how he’s able to grow his brokerage under the Real Living brand in this new YouTube video. Parrinello took over ownership of the brokerage more than two years ago – when the firm was selling about 100-130 homes per year with 15 agents – this week, Casa Fina Realty hired its 40th agent and is on pace to sell more than 300 homes in 2017. Under Parrinello’s leadership, the brokerage has grown all aspects of the business, including sales volume, agent count and per person productivity.
Watch as Parrinello explains the factors responsible for this success.
Thoughts on Leadership: Business Plan Now
By Gino Blefari
This week my travels find me in Northern California, taking meetings, organizing calls and just this morning, leading a teleconference with Debbie De Grote, founder/CEO of Excelleum Coaching & Consulting all about business planning. For all of us, a business plan is vital because even as an agent we must think of ourselves as a business, and all businesses must have a plan. Remember the wise words of Benjamin Franklin: “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.”
Some may think it’s strange though to have a business-planning call at the end of August but there’s a reason for this exact timing. During my 30+ years in the real estate business—as an agent, a manager and an owner of a company—I’ve always found that there’s a cash flow problem in the months of January and February. This applies to agents as much as it does to owners.
Why? Because real estate operates on a 90-day cycle, so what we do 90 days before gets paid out 90 days later. This means a lag in business during the fall months will show up in Q1 of the new year. The lag is understandable, though avoidable; it’s obvious to notice right after Halloween a great number of agents go into hibernation. There’s Thanksgiving, the holidays … life gets busy and business gets put on the back burner. (Extrapolate those 90 days during this lull and you’ll understand clearly why cash-flow problems plague us in January and February.)
To get you started, access our Business Planning Essentials by clicking HERE.
Starting now, I want us to no longer think of Jan. 1 as the beginning of the new year. Our new start? Oct. 1. If we assume Oct. 1 is the “new” New Year, then we have to take the month of September to complete our business plan by that date.
As a small aside, it may seem early but now is a great time to organize the holiday cards you’ll send out, to arrange for a family photo shoot, to make sure you handwrite those messages (if possible) for your prospective and current clients. You want your holiday card to be in the mail on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving so when that Friday hits and everyone is shopping and home with family, yours is the first card they receive. (As a tip, make sure it has your photo and/or a family photo on it so they’ll be more likely to keep it.)
Another very important aspect of your business plan is to schedule your calendar for the entire year. The first thing to schedule is your vacation, days off—anything that will give you balance. This will ensure that it actually happens and you don’t schedule meetings or calls during the time when you’re supposed to be off.
So, what’s the message? First, if you haven’t already, click HERE to download the Business Planning Essentials document. Then make a promise to dedicate the entire month of September to complete your plan and have it polished, finished and ready to go on Oct. 1. But this timing shouldn’t just be applied now; you should for the rest of your career use this as a framework to build and grow your business. Each year, pledge to complete your business plan by Oct. 1 and then, when everyone else isn’t working or scrambling to business plan over the holidays, you’ll be way ahead of the game.
GINO BLEFARI is CEO of HSF Affiliates LLC. You can follow Gino on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.